Linking machine



June 12, 1962 I L. M. BERGER ETAL. 3,038,162

' LINKING MACHINE Filed June 8, 1961 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 12, 1962 Filed J1me 8, 1961 L. M. BERGER ETAL LINKING MACHINE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 3.038,162 LINKING MACHINE Leopold M. Berger and Alois Gist], both of 101 Union St.,

Brooklyn, N.Y. Filed June 8, 1961, Ser. No. 126,397 Claims. (Cl. 1-187) This invention relates to a machine for closing an open substantially circular link. i

In the preparation of, for example, ear rings, an open link or ring is provided upon which a pendant or two are disposed. The link sides are then crimped together into abutting relationship to captively retain said pendant on said closed link or ring.

In the prior art this procedure was effected by hand with the aid of suitable pinch-nosed pliers, a tedious and time consuming task.

It is an object of this invention to provide a machine for bringing about a crimping action upon a rigidly held link.

It is another object to produce a machine that provides a plurality of suitably oriented open links in a successive relationship as each link is individually crimped and removed from the machine. A

It is another object to provide a machine adapted -to rapidly receive a large number of open links.

It is still another object to provide a machine adapted for magazine refilling or loading in a minimum of time.

It is a further object to provide a machine having a gravity feed of open links into said machine in a manner to effect linear orientation of said links in a suitable groove.

It is another object to provide a machine adapted to hold the link being crimped in a rigid immovable manner during the crimping step.

It is a further object to provide an inexpensive refilling magazine having a plurality of open links captively held thereon.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent upon reading the following descriptive disclosure taken in connection with an illustrative embodiment shown in the accompanying drawing and in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the machine, broken away in part, to show the interior moving elements thereof.

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the machine, with the feeding mechanism removed and showing the manner of advancing the open links toward the crimping head,

FIG. 3 is an enlarged detail section view taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 2 and showing the manner of feeding oriented open links into a feed channel and showing a spring-loaded boot element for aligning the links in said feed channel and to prevent rearward movement of the links in said channel,

FIG. 4 is a section view taken on line 44 of FIG. 2 and showing the manner of captively retaining the slide bar in a pair of retaining blocks,

FIG. 5 is a top view of the loading stem having a magazine thereon,

FIG. 6 is a view of a refilling magazine, broken away in part, and showing the manner of loading links thereon, and

FIG. 7 is a bottom View of the top housing showing the pressure plate and the arrester prong at its rear end.

Turning to the drawing, and especially to FIG. 1 a

rectangular base 10 is provided with an integral platform frame 11 having a pair of spaced-apart vertically disposed supports 12. The supports 12 are each provided with an integral apertured angularly disposed plate 12X which are secured to the base 10 by conventional bolts. A platform 12Y is integral with both supports 12 and is suitably angularly disposed relative to said supports. An aperture 12Z is disposed in the frame platform extending from end to end thereof.

A pair of conventional bearings 13 are secured by conventional bolts to the frame 10 in spaced-apart relationship to the front end thereof. A suitable rocker arm 14 is journaled to said bearings by means of axle 15. A cam roller 16 is secured to the rear end of the rocker arm 14 and a crimping pin 17 is adjusta'bly secured in a threaded aperture disposed in the front end of the rocker arm by use of conventional adjusting means such as threaded nuts 18.

The crimping pin is provided with a suitably grooved and suitably curved nose 17X (FIG. 2) to suitably squeeze the ends together to effect closure of the link as will be described hereinafter.

Turning to FIG. 2 there is shown the manner of motivating the machine. An axle 19 is disposed through the frame supports 12 and is rotated by means of a conventional V-belt drive 20 secured to a motor 21. A cam 2 is conventionally secured to the axle 19 and contacts cam roller 16 to effect suitable rocking of the rocker arm 14.

A second cam 23 is secured conventionally to aXle 19 and is of a suitable configuration to suitably actuate a slide assembly to feed link pins in an oriented manner to crimping pin 17. The axle 19 is provided with a third cam 24 contacting a micro-switch 24X which actuates motor 21.

. Avery important feature of this invention is the provision of means for feeding open links 25 one at a time to i the crimping pin 17 (FIG. 3). To accomplish this result the platform 12Y is provided with a bottom housing plate 26 having an integral rear portion 26X of greater width to accommodate a slide bar 27. The front portion of the bottom plate 26 is provided with a suitable centrally disposed U-shaped channel 26A terminating in a suitably curved nose 26B. The rear portion 26X of the bottom plate is provided with a channel each having an under cut keyway channel 26C in each of the channel side walls thereof.

The slide bar 27 (FIG. 4) is provided with suitable co-acting side walls to mate with the side walls of the channels of bottom plate portion 26X.

The slide bar 27 is itself provided with a U-shaped channel 27A having a long bottom pusher rod 28 and a top short pusher rod 29 secured thereto by a pair of conventional threaded =bolts.

The slide bar 27 is provided with a depending integral rod 27X which engages a tensioned coil spring 30 disposed in platform 12Y and captively held therein by a threaded nut 31. The bottom plate 26 is secured removably to the platform 1'2Y by conventional bolts 32 which bolts 32 may be recessed into threaded apertures 32X to obtain a flush surface to permit a top housing plate 33 to be secured thereover and thereto by use of conventional bolts.

The top housing plate 33 (FIG. 7) is provided with a suitable channel 33X which communicates with a U- shaped channel 33Y which runs the length of the top 3 housing and terminates at the nose portion. The top plate is provided at its front end with a pair of integral spaced-apart apertured upright supports 34. The top plate 33 is provided with an integral upright arm 35 for securing a loading stem to be described hereinafter.

A squeeze plate lever 36 is journaled into the upright supports 34. The lever 36 is provided with a pressure foot 37 adapted to be disposed in the front end of channel 33). The lever 36 is provided with threaded bolt 38, ring coil spring 40 so that suitable seizure pressure may be applied to the lever nose 37. The channel 33Y of the top housing plate 33 is provided in its ceiling with a pair of cavities adapted to receive a pair of suitable springs as will be described.

A pressure plate 41 is disposed in channel 33Y and extends from the slot 33X to the pressure foot 37 of lever 36 (FIG. 7). An arrester nib 42 of suitable configuration is disposed on the rear of the plate 41. The pressure plate 41 is provided with a pair of cavities and suitable coil springs 43 are disposed therein and in the coacting cavities located in the ceiling of the channel 33Y of the top' plate 33.

An integral loading stem 44 of solid metal is provided with a cylindrical portion 45 and a flat flange portion 46. The stem is long so as to receive a vast number of open links 25. It is provided at its top with a pair of plates 47 conventionally secured one on each side of the flange 46 (FIG.

As shown in FIG. 3, the loading stem 44 is secured to the top plate upright portion 35 by conventional threaded bolts. The bot-tom of rod 45 is suitably and accurately located above the top pusher rod'29 and suitably away from the pressure plate 41 (FIG. 7).

The links 25 are loaded onto stem 44 from magazine 50 made of thin sheet metal having a pair of skirts 51 and the general cross-section shape ofthe loading stem 44. The open rings 25 are loaded onto the magazine 50 (FIG. 6) and the ends of the skirts are turned outwardly by manual operation to captively reta'in the many rings .25 on a loaded magazine. To load the stem 44 the bottom turned over edges of the'skirts 51 are straightened and inserted between the plates 47 of the loading stem (FIG. 5) whereupon the rings fall to the bottom of the stern (FIG. 3

In the operation of this invention the rearward motion o f the slide bar 27 and its top and bottom pusher plates 29 and 28 respectively is effected by the continuous urging pressure of spring 30 on the slide bar rod 27X so that the roller 53 secured to the slide bar" continuously engages the cam 23. When the cam operated by the motor is in suitable position the slide bar 27 is in its rearmost position', so that a link 25 sliding on the rearward moving top pusher rod '29 will fall off its frontend onto the bottom pusherrod 28, Since a plurality of links have previously been disposed in the channel of the front portion of the bottom rod 28, the rearward movement of pusher rods 29 and 28 causes a front link to fall off of the top surface of the bottom pusher rod 28 onto the bottom wall of the channel in the front portion of the bottom housing plate 26 since the rearward movement of the plurality of links on the surface of the bottom pusher rod is prevented due to the arresting action of the nib 42 ('FIG. 3)

Thus an open link 25 falls from the loading stem 44 onto pusher rod 28, substantially simultaneously with the fall of another link 25 at the head of the column on rod 28 falling into the channel of the bottom plate 26.

The forward movement of the slide bar 27 due to cam 23 pushes the link 25 in front of the top pusher rod passed the nib 42 raising it against the action of the springs 43.

Substantially simultaneously with this movement of a link 25 under nib 42, the cam 22 actuates the rocker arm 14 to bring pin 17 to engage the two open sides of a link 25 held by pressure foot 37 of the lever 36 and against the front end of the bottom pusher rod 28 to suitably crimp the ends together.

The operation of this invention is intermittent since an: operator inserts jewelry onto the link 25 held in a suitablemanner by pressure foot 37 and then actuates the motor' to effect the crimping loading operation, the micro-switch 24 turning off the motor with each operation.

A distinguishing feature of this invention is the gravity feed of the open links 25 from a magazine onto the feed stem and the subsequent gravity feed of the open links from the stem onto the pusher mechanism.

The pusher mechanism includes both pusher bars, namely the top pusher bar 29 and the bottom pusher bar 28. As shown in FIG. 2 these two pusher bars 28 and 29 are both provided with V-shaped cuts at their free end. The V-shaped cuts in the pusher bars cause them to produce a self-aligning function of the open links 25, so that the open end of the links are disposed toward the crimping pin 17.

Also according to this invention the magazine 50 may be made of plastic, stiff paper or other material, such magazine being used for the feeding, stacking and transporting of the links 25.

This invention has been described by means of an illustr-ative embodiment but it is not limited thereto but only to the claims herein.

We claim:

1. A machine for crimping open links comprising a frame having a base and a pair of spaced-apart upright supports having a platform therebetween, a spring loaded rocker arm jouirnaled to the frame base in front of said platform, axle means disposed through said upright supports and adapted to be actuated by a motor, cam means disposed on said.axle means engaging one end of said rocker arm to depress same" against the action of the spring, a crimping pin adjustably disposed in the other end of said rocker arm and adapted to move toward said platform, feeding means for feeding open links one at a time to said crimping pin, and dispensing means disposed removably on said feeding means for individually dispensing an open link into said feeding means.

2. The machine of claim 1 wherein the feeding means comprises a bottom longitudinal plate having a longitudinal channel in its front portion communicating with a longitudinal slot having keyway side walls in the rear' portion, removably secured to said platform, a plungerhaving a slide bar at its rear adapted to engage the key way side walls disposed slideably in said slot, said plunger having a pair of top and bottom superimposed suitable pusher rods secured to said slide bar and disposed in said longitudinal channel, said slide bar having cam contact means protruding beyond said slot, a cam disposed on said axle between said upright supports and engaging; said cam contact means, and spring means disposed in an aperture of said platform and engaging said slide bar for continuously engaging the plunger contact means to said cam.

3. The machine of claim 2 wherein the dispensingmeans comprises a longitudinal top housing plate having plate being secured to said bottom plate with the respective channels therein being disposed over one another, a spring loaded pressure plate disposed in said channel of said top plate, said pressure plate having an arrester nib at its rear under surface for permitting one way movement of open links thereunder in the channel of said bottom plate.

4. The machine of claim 3 comprising a spring loaded lever plate having a nose portion disposed in the overlying channels at the forward end thereof for rigidly holding an open link in said channels during the crimping operation, said lever being journaled to said top plate.

5. The machine of claim 3 comprising a long loading stem having a cylindrical portion integral with a flange portion, said stem being substantially vertically secured to said top plate rearwardly of said lever plate, the top plate having a slot at its rear, the bottom of the cylindrical stem portion being disposed in said slot of said top plate and directly behind the nib of the pressure plate in said top plate channel, whereby rearward movement of the plunger top pusher rod beyond said stem permits an open link disposed thereon to :fall in front of the top pusher rod and upon the bottom pusher rod with substantially a simultaneous fall of the foremost of the links aligned on the top surface of the bottom pusher rod into the channel of the bottom plate, return movement of the References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Levine July 17, 1934 Hanset Apr. 25, 1944 Blumensaadt Nov. 13, 1951 Simpson Aug. 28, 1956 

